John Pollock & Wai Ting look back at WWF Thursday RAW! Thursday (February 13, 1997) as Shawn Michaels vacates the WWF Championship through his now-infamous “lost my smile” speech.
In February 1997 – with Raw recently expanded to two hours and just days away from migrating to a live, weekly format – WWF learns that one of its top stars will be unavailable for the foreseeable future.
On a special Thursday night edition of Raw, Shawn Michaels utters the following famous words amidst fear that his career was over:
“I know that over the, uh, the last several months I’ve lost a lot of things and one of them has been my smile.”
We will dive into the real stories behind this speech, reactions to it in 1997, and how its message has been construed over the years.
Plus, a review of the rest of the card featuring The Rock’s first WWF title win.
Espresso Executive Producer Neal Flanagan and Jesse from the 6 join us to discuss Neal’s selection before entering the Trivia Gauntlet.
WWF Thursday RAW! Thursday
Thursday, February 13, 1997
Lowell, Massachusetts
- Bret “Hitman” Hart vs. Vader
- WWF Tag Team Championships: Owen Hart & British Bulldog © vs. Faarooq & Crush
- Sycho Sid vs. “Stone Cold” Steve Austin
- The Undertaker vs. Savio Vega w/ Nation of Domination
- The Head Bangers vs. Aldo Montoya & Bob Holly
- WWF Intercontinental Championship: Hunter Hearst Helmsley © vs. Rocky Maivia
Watch on the WWE Nertwork (account required): Thursday Raw Thursday (2/13/97)
Next time on Rewind-A-Wai… Friends (S3 E24: Ultimate Fighting Champion) / The Office (S2 E6: The Fight)
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